Bestest Superheroes in the World
by Marzos
Summary: Neil and Eva are metahumans who work for the superhero organization SigCorp. They end up taking on a case more complicated than they originally anticipate-one involving an out of control metahuman named River and her husband Johnny, who will doing anything to keep his wife home where she belongs.
1. Prologue

There could be no more denying it. Neil Wallace Watts was dying. When the doctor broke the news to Neil he took it passively, nodding in confirmation that he had, indeed, understood what was said. He left Neil with some brochures and pamphlets-resources, places he could go for support and comfort as they moved through the process, his options for care.

His parents were crying. Neil was eighteen, ready to graduate, already being offered full rides for his grades. Now he'd likely be buried before he could visit any of those campuses. He might not even get to hang out with his friends in the corner of the dance floor at prom.

He looked at them.

"I'm going to take a walk," Neil said.

He shoved his hands in his pockets, walking out of the room. For some reason it felt...wrong to get upset with them there. Neil was dying; their son was dying. Neither of them had the energy to deal with the other's pain right now.

His fist pressed against his forehead and Neil leaned against the wall before he got a call on his phone.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Neil."

"Eva, hey, what?"

"I just wanted to ask you if you're going to be able to get your half of the lab report done."

"Oh. Oh yeah, sure."

"You okay? You sound upset."

Neil didn't answer right away.

"You're at a doctor's appointment, right? Something happen?"

Neil blinked. "Yeah, yeah. Something happened."

He didn't know how it was possible for him to feel the tension in a house on the other side of town, but he did. He could almost see Eva tightening the phone, voice constricting.

"Oh my God, Neil, are you alright?"

Neil's fingers tightened around his phone.

"...No," he finally said thickly, "they said I am freaking out of shape and I should start running. You _know_ hate running."

Like air leaking out of a balloon, he could hear Eva's voice lighten. "Neil, you corn-on-the-cob, don't scare me like that! It's not funny!"

He brushed his bangs out of his eyes with one hand. "It was pretty funny."

"Shut up. You better get that homework done."

"Aye-aye, Captain."

They hung up. Neil walked back into the examination room. He grabbed a pamphlet for 'end of life services.'

"I am not going to die," Neil announced to his parents. His mother managed to speak first.

"Neil-"

"No. I'm not dying." He crumpled the pamphlet in his fist. "I am _not going to die."_

He would get better, or die trying-but he was _not_ going to die from this.

Eva stomped through the hallway. She hoped that Neil would hear the stomping and come out of hiding himself. When he didn't Eva rolled her eyes.

"Neil, where are you? Come on! You're missing it! If you make me go into the boy's bathroom just to find you-"

"I'm coming I'm _coming!"_

Neil walked out. Eva crossed her arms.

"You're missing the presentation," Eva said again.

"Why do you care if I'm there or not?"

"Because you said we'd do it together! I thought you _wanted_ to!"

"I never agreed to that. I said it sounded better than being stuck in an office all day."

Eva pouted. "Well that _sounds_ like you want to do it."

"Not necessarily. It _also_ sounds more deadly. I don't want to risk this pretty face."

"Come on!"

"Alright, _alright."_

Eva grabbed Neil by the hand and pulled him faster. "If we hurry we might not miss the beginning!"

They snuck back into the auditorium, hiding in the back. On stage, standing in front of a green screen, a man and a woman were wearing white lab coats.

"Alright, let's get this started!" The woman, blonde with hair pulled back into a bun, grinned broadly with startlingly white teeth.

"Not much older than us by the looks of it, think I'd have a shot?" Neil whispered.

"Neil, _gross."_

"Just making conversation!"

"My name is Doctor Roxanne Winters," the presenter began, "and _this_ is my colleague Robert Lin."

The other man smiled, nodding stoically. Roxanne leaned in to put an arm around him, so far over that she had to lift one foot in the air.

"But when we work we are... _Frozen Fire!"_

Roxanne struck a pose. She slid her palms together, almost like striking a match against flint, and they burst into flames. Everyone in the auditorium gasped. Roxanne grinned.

"As you can see, my power is pyrokinesis- _oof!"_

A snowball collided with her head and melted, dripping onto the stage.

"...And _my_ power is controlling ice and snow," Robert finished, smirking a little.

" _Anyway,"_ Roxanne huffed, "today we want to talk to you all a little bit about where our powers come from."

"As well as some opportunities for you if _you_ ever find that you have them, too," her partner finished.

"Geez, is this rehearsed," Neil groaned. Eva put a finger to her lips.

"Neil, _shhhhh."_

Roxanne and Robert stepped aside. The projector started to play a video. The screen was in grainy black and white, intentionally made to look like an old movie.

 _What are meta-humans?_

 _Hello! So, you want to learn about where superpowers come from?_

(There was a huge question mark in the middle of the screen.)

 _That is an excellent question! Answering it requires us to go back many years ago…_

There was an animation that looked like a timeline, and an arrow going backwards.

 _In 2025, Sigmund's Comet passed through earth's orbit, close enough for the eye to see._

There was an animation of a comet flying across the screen.

 _This comet blasted our atmosphere with radioactive energy! This radioactivity, dubbed meta-energy, is the source of superpowers to this very day!_

Neil leaned back in his seat. The science was the part that was actually at least somewhat interesting to him.

 _This meta-energy caused immediate and incredible side effects on a portion of the population, with new and extraordinary abilities never seen before in the human race._

Three identical people were shown on the screen, only for one to suddenly glow and begin flexing.

 _And, just as normal nuclear energy can cause side effects generations after the initial fallout...so too has meta-energy continued to cause the spontaneous generation of superhuman abilities! One in one hundred thousand people are now believed to have abilities related to exposure to residual meta-energy still present in our atmosphere. In the fifteen years since Sigmund's Comet changed the world as we knew it, the question still remains: for those given these powers-_

"If they say something to the effect of 'with great power comes great responsibility' I swear, Eva, I'm gonna walk out."

"Neil, shut _up."_

 _-should they try to live a normal life, as some suggest? Or is there something else-something greater? Taima and Willis McMillan thought so, and-SIGMUND CORPORATION WAS CREATED._

'SIG CORP' was emblazoned across the screen in big, bold comic book style lettering. Neil couldn't help but smile a little at Eva. Her hands were folded tightly in her lap, entire body leaning forward, mouth slightly open as she listened intently to every word.

 _Sigmund Corporation was founded to tap into the potential of these new meta-humans. Whether our members are helping a cat down from a tree, or saving lives in the wake of catastrophe, every member of SigmundCorp dedicates their lives to bettering their homes, their communities, and the world._

 _SigmundCorp: Because human potential is limitless._

The video ended. Roxanne started clapping loudly.

"Alright! So. That is the history of meta-humans and our SigmundCorp. The whole point of the entire presentation is...that it's _totally_ possible that some of you have powers already or that you're gonna get them in the future! Rob, remember when ours started to show up? Wasn't it _cool?"_

Rob cleared his throat. "What my colleague Doctor Winters is trying to say is...our researchers at SigCorp find that highschool is the average age that powers tend to manifest for metahumans so...if you think you might be, we encourage you to look at SigCorp as a career path. Whatever your abilities are, we'll find a place for you."

"And we'll be here all day to answer any of your questions! Thank you for coming to our presentation!"

The student body was dismissed. Eva stood up, hanging near the back while everyone else left.

"Neil, you coming?"

"You still want to do this after that lame presentation?"

"I am doing this and you are _coming with me."_

She grabbed Neil's hand and practically yanked him away. Roxanne and Rob was leaning against the stage, chatting with each other.

"I thought it went well," Rob said.

"Did you _really_ have to do the snowball thing though?"

"You lay the 'superhero' thing on so thick you could cut it with a knife, and I can't have _any_ fun?" He shook his head. Rob grabbed a can of soda he left at the edge of the stage, taking a sip. "Not fair, Rox-"

"Excuse me?"

They both stopped. They looked at Eva.

"Hey, do you and your friend have any questions?" Roxanne asked.

Eva's brow furrowed a little at the way she said 'friend,' until she realized that she was still holding Neil's hand. She let go, wrinkling her nose. Neil looked slightly offended but didn't say anything.

"Hello. My name is Eva Rosalene, and this is my friend-"

"Matterhorn. _Lorenzo_ von Matterhorn."

"-Neil Watts. Sorry. His IQ drops at least ten points when he's nervous."

"I'm not nervous, you're nervous!" He protested.

"The _point_ is...we're kind of...well I really respect Sigmund Corp and I-"

"We're freaks like you," Neil finished bluntly.

"NEIL."

"You were taking forever!"

"You're _blowing_ this for us!" Eva shouted, stomping her foot and getting in Neil's face.

"Whoa, whoa guys," Rob said gently, "uh, please don't fight each other."

"You're both metahumans?" Roxanne asked. Eva cleared her throat and looked at them again.

"Uh, yes. Our powers manifested a few months ago."

"Oh, that's wonderful! Can we see?"

"Roxie, we need to wait until we're at headquarters-"

"Headquarters-shmedquaters, Rob! We're experienced enough to make sure nothing happens, and everyone else has left. I wanna see."

Rob ran a hand through his hair. "Well...fine," he said gruffly. "Uh, which of you wants to go first?"

"Oooooh, oooh!" Neil raised his hand. " _Eva_ does!"

"Wait, what? Me?"

Neil casually strolled over to the stage.

"Sure Eva. I mean- _THINK FAST!"_

He grabbed Rob's soda, spinning around and throwing it at Eva's face. Eva yelped, holding her hands up protectively. There was a spark, and then a semi-transparent, blue barrier appeared to protect her. The soda hit it and then fell to the ground, liquid spilling all over the carpet. The barrier disappeared and Eva blinked.

"Seriously, Neil?"

"Come on Eva, that looked cool!"

"So you use forcefields?" Roxanne asked, "That's so cool!"

"That was my soda…"

"We'll get you another Rob. Neil, what about you?"

Neil grinned. "I am glad you asked."

He grabbed Roxie, picking her up bridal style.

" _Hup!"_

Neil then raised his arm and managed to hold her above his head with one hand, not breaking a sweat.

"You have _super strength?"_

"Hey, _Rob,_ don't sound so surprised." He put Roxanne down. Eva watched them nervously.

"So...could we join SigCorp? Maybe?"

Roxanne and Rob looked at each other. Roxanne put a hand in front of her mouth to block their conversation as they whispered to each other animatedly.

"Do you think they'll let us down gently?" Neil whispered to Eva.

"If they say no it's your fault for being a cucumber!" Eva mumbled back.

"Eva, you're literally the _only one_ who understands what being a 'cucumber' is supposed to mean. I choose to believe 'cucumber' is your way of saying handsome."

"I don't even use it as an adjective!"

"Stud, then?"

Eva crossed her arms in a huff and looked away from him. Finally, Roxanne and Rob turned back to them. The woman help out her hand and Eva shook it-her hand felt pleasantly warm.

"First off, call me Roxie, no 'Roxanne' or 'Doctor Winters' stuff," she said. She grinned. "And secondly, you should totally come to SigCorp!"

* * *

Eva wasn't prepared.

She never felt prepared.

But at this moment she _especially_ didn't feel prepared.

Eva was sitting inside of the SigCorp building, waiting for the ceremony to start, her graduation cap slipping down her head. She was sitting against the wall, taking deep, nervous breaths.

"You getting ready, Valedictorian?"

Eva looked up. "I'm not the Valedictorian," she said.

Neil shrugged. He sat down next to her and passed her a flask.

"If you're nervous this might help."

Eva frowned and pushed his hand away. "I'm not getting drunk."

"Not drunk. _Buzzed._ Come on, a few sips of my grandpa's favorite whiskey and you won't even remember making a speech."

"It's not really the speech I'm nervous about," she answered. Neil frowned.

"Well come on then, spill it. I only have so much energy to waste on empathy."

Eva twisted her hands in her lap. She knew Neil wasn't being serious. She didn't tell him about her problems often, but when she did he listened-rolled his eyes and complained about being forced to, but listened.

"Neil, do you think we made the right decision?"

"What do you mean?"

"We skipped college to go right into the SigCorp program," Eva said. "This is what I've always wanted. I put all my eggs in this basket. If it doesn't work out...what if it doesn't work out? Neil, you turned down _full rides_ to college to do this with me."

Neil took a swig from his flask. "Okay, first of all, don't worry about me," he said, "I didn't do this just for you, I did this because I wanna be a superhero. I mean who wouldn't? You think I would have been happier sitting at a computer all day? Don't flatter yourself."

Eva raised her eyebrows slightly but said nothing.

"Second," Neil continued, "Eva, we're twenty. College takes, what, four years? We've got time to do something else if this doesn't work out. You got to stop worrying about it. You're at the top of the program. You'll be great."

Eva still had doubt tickling at the back of her mind, but she'd never admit it.

"Yeah, but I'm paired up with _you._ There's only so much slack I can pick up."

"You can't forcefield a bus off the edge of a cliff, Miss I-Can-Do-This-By-Myself." He stretched his legs out. "You ready to go, or what?"

Eva narrowed her eyes. "...Give me that flask."

Neil grinned and passed it over. Eva took a swig and her eyes widened the moment the liquid hit her tongue.

"This isn't whiskey, this is _coffee!"_

"...Yeah," Neil admitted, "Grandpa just thought the flask made me look cooler."

Eva dropped it and got up. "Let's go, the graduation ceremony is starting."

"I'll be there. And Eva, we're superheroes. What's the worst that can happen?"

Eva smiled at him as she left. Neil frowned, feeling a sharp pain, and he grabbed a bottle from his pocket.

Neil swallowed a handful of pills, took a sip of coffee to wash it down, and went outside to watch Eva make her graduation speech.


	2. Chapter 1

When they finally made it to the restaurant Neil and Eva stumbled inside, coughing and clutching their stomachs.

"...Remind me to _never_ let you drive again."

"That squirrel had it coming!"

Eva straightened, brushing herself off. "Try and look professional, please? If we don't prove we're competent, it'll be right back to performing at children's parties."

"No problem." He brushed his bangs into place, pulling out a pair of one way mirror glasses-he called the habit of wearing them in uniform 'reverse Clark-Kenting.' Eva called it ridiculous.

They didn't even really wear uniforms in the first place. Corporate seemed unsure of whether they wanted to look like a serious scientific organisation or S.H.I.E.L.D. So they had superhero names, but they wore lab coats.

The entire place was still in disarray-after all, the attack had just happened-but a lot of the staff had decided to stay and clean up the broken glass and set the tables back upright.

"Who do we ask first?" Eva asked.

"Eva, leave this to _me._ Please."

"Wait, Neil, what are you-"

Neil procured a table and climbed on top of it.

"ATTENTION EVERYONE!"

The waitstaff that was cleaning up stopped and stared at him.

"You may be wondering after today, 'whatever shall we do? Who will help us after such a traumatic event?' Well, have no fear-"

Neil flexed.

"- _Megawatts_ and _Forceshield_ are here!"

Someone stepped forward. He was dressed differently than the staff; he had a red bowtie and no apron.

"What is going on here?" He said said, in a slight Italian accent. He was at least fifty pounds heavier than Watts, and Eva intervened before he tried to body slam Neil.

"We're SigCorp, Sir!" She interrupted, walking forward and holding out her hand. "The superhero names are just a PR thing. If you'd prefer, I'm Agent Eva Rosalene and this is my colleague Neil Watts."

Neil pouted, hopping onto the floor. His wrinkled and messy lab coat was open to reveal a black turtleneck. "Yeah, if you want to take the fun out of it, I'm Neil Watts."

The man narrowed his eyes suspiciously, but shook her hand. "Michael Esposito. I'm the owner of The Lighthouse."

"Well, first let me say that we're sorry about your restaurant, Mr. Esposito."

"It's okay. Windows can be replaced, tables can be picked back up...the important thing is that no one got more than some scratches."

"Can you tell us what happened?"

Mr. Esposito looked around. "Honestly, I don't know what happened," he said, "one second everything looks fine, the next- _boom,"_ he snapped his fingers, "every speck of glass shattered. Tables started flipping over, people fell on the ground. Then that was just...it. Like a bomb, over and done."

Neil nodded. "So no freaky metahuman monster with tentacles or anything?"

He blinked. "Uh...no."

"Man, you didn't even get a cool one. That's rough, buddy."

"Well, we looked at some camera footage and we think we might have a suspect in mind," Eva said. She started tapping buttons on her watch. A hologram appeared, above her wrist, that showed camera footage from the incident.

"And...there," the video zoomed in. "See those two? Everyone else was running in the other direction to leave out the front of the restaurant. But they were running in the _other_ direction. We think they were trying to sneak out the back so they wouldn't be seen."

"It's the flimsiest reason to have a suspect ever, but Sherlock Holmes has worked with less," Neil said, "so you recognize these two?"

Mr. Esposito's brow furrowed as he stared at the photo. It was of a man and a woman, in their late twenties to early thirties. The man's hair was disheveled, and he stumbled into a run with a death grip on the woman's wrist. The woman looked stunned as she was dragged, red hair flying behind her, eyes wide and distant as if in a trance.

"...Oh, it couldn't have been them. I don't believe it."

"Why not?" Eva asked.

"That's Johnny and River Wyles-the photo is a little grainy, but River always wears yellow and blue. My best regulars. He's a carpenter-comes in covered with sawdust sometimes from the job. They can't be making great money and they still make sure to give more in tips than any of my other customers. Always courteous to the waitstaff. Been coming for years. Couldn't think of a nicer couple."

"Anything seem out of the ordinary that day?"

He shook his head. "No, I sat them down, same as every other day. I suppose Johnny was a little disappointed since we couldn't get them their favorite table?"

He walked away and they followed him. They stopped in front of a shattered window, where the breeze from the ocean made Neil button up his coat.

"This is why it's called The Lighthouse," he said, sounding somewhat proud. "Beautiful view of the lighthouse from the window. Johnny always requested a table near the window-it's hard to manage, but I tried to do it for them. But I already had those tables totally booked."

"And River was...upset?"

"She was-" He frowned. "I don't know," he finished, "it's hard to tell with her, but I don't even know if she's a metahuman, let alone willing to destroy my restaurant because she had the wrong table."

He shrugged. A contractor walked up to him. "Can I take a moment?"

"Sure," Eva said. "Could you just tell us which waiter served them?"

"Oh, I'm not sure-Marco, Giovanni, David! SigCorp is here!"

Three waiters stopped sweeping glass off the floor, walking over to them.

"You three were on shift while Mr. and Mrs. Wyles were here, yes?"

"I served them, sir," Marco said.

"You talk to these two people, okay? They have the coats and the badges, they were sent here to help."

"At least he's not one of those anti-SigCorp protesters," Neil whispered to Eva.

"Yeah."

Marco wiped his hands on his apron. "What about the Wyles?"

"What do you know about them?" Eva asked.

"Either of them have tentacles?" Eva elbowed him.

"What? That's a legitimate question!"

Marco narrowed his eyes at them. "Yeah, I served them. The woman is weird though. Wouldn't surprise me if she's a freak."

"Please, tell the freaks trying to help you what have you that impression," Neil drawled. Marco rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.

"She's...just _rude._ Never gives more than one word answers. I ask, 'how are you doing tonight, Mrs? She answers 'well.' I ask 'and does the beautiful lady enjoy her food?' She just says 'yes.' And she won't even look at me. I feel like she thinks she's too good for us. When she does look up it's to stare at the lighthouse. Can't stand her sometimes-"

"Thank you sir," Eva interrupted. "We'll go and report this back to headquarters."

She grabbed Neil's hand. "Let's go, Neil."

"Wait!"

There was a case that had shattered, and Neil grabbed a cannoli from it. He took a bite, gave Eva a thumbs up, and they left.

"We had enough info?" Neil asked.

"I just couldn't stand talking to him anymore," Eva answered. "He clearly doesn't have an open mind about _anyone_ remotely different than him."

"I don't know, she did sound like a bit of a child fish," Neil said.

Eva looked at him. "I have a theory about that," she said, "and I don't think it has to do with being a metahuman."

"You don't think she is?"

"I didn't say she wasn't. I'm just not certain she's a bad person either...like I said, I have some theories. They hang on this being a psychic based meta-ability, though."

"...Do we need to call to get the car towed?"

" _You_ need to call to get the car towed."

" _Ugh,_ they're gonna be so _mad,"_ Neil groaned.

"Well, you can make up for it by helping me." Eva started typing a number into her phone. "We have a name now; Johnny and River Wyles. I guess next we just...talk to them."

"You know what? I'm not calling no tow truck."

"But Neil, you drive the car into a-"

Neil jogged over to the ditch, grabbed the back bumper, and pulled it out.

"-well, okay, I guess we can at least worry about the damage until we get back?"…?"

"Alright. I'll drive-"

"No!" She tossed her phone to Neil. He caught it. "You will google an address for them, and if you have to, call Rob and see if he can find anything."

"I don't need Rob," Neil answered. "And I crash _once,_ and suddenly I can't drive ever?"

Eva stared at him. "...Just get in the car and stop being a pickled olive."

"You know I hate pickled olives!"

"Exactly."

Neil got in the car, strapping in his seatbelt. "I am not a bad driver."

Eva got in and started the car. She pulled out onto the road. "Tell that to the poor squirrel you ran-"

"EVA YOU'RE ON THE WRONG SIDE OF THE ROAD!"

Eva gasped. She wrenched the wheel to the side, narrowly avoiding a car. They spun around once before she managed to get the car into the right lane.

"Ooooow," Neil groaned, holding the side of his head. Eva kept her hands tight on the wheel.

"And _that_ is how you avoid hitting something and not crashing your car," she said primly.

Eva turned the radio up and hummed along while Neil worked on the phone.

* * *

They found the address of Johnny and River's house, a small two bedroom home with peeling paint and a picture of a lighthouse on the welcome mat.

"...Alright, Eva," Neil said. He hung up the phone. "It seems like a simple knock on the door kind of thing."

"I don't think so. The lights are off. They're probably not there." She turned and looked at Neil. "I mean, if you're trying to avoid getting caught, I don't think your first stop is your house."

"Well, we can't just walk in without a warrant, right?"

"Yeah. I guess we could talk to the neighbors? They might know where they'd go. If I have to guess, Johnny and River aren't hardened criminals, they'd want somewhere familiar…"

Eva's phone rang. She picked it up. "Agent Rosalene here-you're kidding me. Where? Yeah, we're not that far from there. Neil and I can handle it. Absolutely. We'll let you know if we need backup, Rob."

She hung up and looked at Neil. "Someone called the cops."

"I haven't done anything they can prove!"

"Haha," Eva rolled her eyes, "someone called the police because they heard a lot of noise coming from a house across the street...the police called SigCorp."

"Because…?"

"My theory about psychic-based powers? Seems correct."

A grin spread across Neil's face.

"A showdown?" Neil flexed. "Seems like a job for _Megawatts!"_

He looked at Eva. She stared back at him until she sighed.

"...and Forcefield," she said flatly. Neil fist pumped.

"Alright! This is what being a superhero's all about!"

He started running. Eva shook her head fondly-until her eyes widened and she ran after him.

"Neil! Neil! You don't know where it is and we have a _car!"_

* * *

It was different than the restaurant; the windows all seemed to be intact, and nothing appeared to be immediately wrong from what they could see in the windows. But when they flashed their SigCorp badges and entered, the real problem came when they walked inside and saw someone, leaning against the wall with an ice pack.

"Ouch, what hit you?" Neil asked. He looked up at them.

"I'm not giving you permission to search my house," he said, "I haven't given it to anyone. I keep telling you people, there isn't a problem. It's just me here."

"We don't think you've done anything wrong, Mr-"

"Nicolas Miller."

"-Miller."

"Yeah, we're here for the one that did that to your head."

Nicolas lifted the ice pack for a moment. "...It was an accident," he mumbled, "she didn't do it on purpose."

"Who? River?"

Nicholas looked at them. Instead of answering, he merely pressed the pack against his head again.

"Mr. Miller-"

"Hey, Eva, wait," Neil held up a finger. "You hear music?"

Eva looked up. She could hear a repetitive tinkling of piano keys. Nicolas rolled his eyes.

"Johnny, you bastard," he mumbled, "I told you to be _quiet."_

"Still want to tell us there's no one here?" She looked at Neil. "Come on, Megawatts. _Slowly."_

Neil nodded. He saluted at Nicolas before walked towards the back of the house. The music sounded like it was coming from behind a door.

Eva looked at Neil. She put a finger to her lips. Her fingers curled around the doorknob.

Neil did a bunch of random hand gestures.

 _What?_ Eva mouthed.

Neil shrugged. He saw cops do that kind of thing on TV.

Eva took a deep breath and slowly opened the door.

Johnny was sitting at a piano with his back to them. He was still playing the piano. River was sitting on the other side of the room, hugging her knees to her chest, a curtain of red hair obscuring her face.

He had to know that they were there, but he still played. After a moment, he stopped. His shoulders fell.

"...You're here for her, aren't you?" He asked softly.

Eva stepped forward. "Are you Johnathan Wyles?"

"Yes."

"And that's your wife River?"

"That's my wife. Who has not done anything wrong."

River didn't show any reaction to what was happening.

"We don't want to treat her unfairly," Eva said gently, "we just want everyone to be safe-including River."

"You don't know what River needs to be safe. I have it under control."

"We need to take her with us. That doesn't mean you can't see her-"

"She is not dangerous!"

"Oh come on," Neil groaned, "look guy, I get it, you're a devoted husband and _whatever._ But the chick destroyed a restaurant and almost cracked your friend's skull open. She's coming with us."

Neil grabbed Johnny's wrist to pull him out of the way. River's head snapped up.

"River, wait-"

Her eyes glowed a bright blue, and Neil let go as he was lifted into the air.

"Whoa, whoa, _whoa,_ Eva! Little help!"

"Neil! Hold on-"

Eva felt herself start to be pulled upward as well. She closed her eyes, creating a forcefield, and fell to the ground.

"Neil, the forcefield is immune to psychic attacks!"

"Great, lovely, now maybe user that practically, huh?"

Eva encased Neil in a forcefield that made him fall to the ground as well. Eva could feel the entire room practically vibrating with energy, like there was static electricity in the air.

"River!" Johnny shouted, "you need to come back! You need to calm _down!"_

River's breath started to become ragged. She closed her eyes, gritting her teeth. River struggled to her feet. The energy in the room started to dissipate.

"Will you...hurt Johnny?" River asked.

"Why would we do that?" Neil asked impatiently.

"He helped me run away. If I go, will you punish Johnny for helping me?"

"We can work on that, but he probably won't get into too much trouble," Eva answered. "Are you going to come with us?"

River paused. "Yes."

"River, wait, no!" He took River's hands. "You can't go with them, you don't know what'll happen to you-"

"They are already taking me, Johnny," River said. "I don't want you to be hurt. I don't want anyone to be hurt."

"You're not...dangerous, River…"

"Of course I am." She answered bluntly. Johnny let go.

"Riv…"

"I think I'm ready to go with you," River said. Neil rubbed his back.

"Okay, _finally,"_ Neil said.

"Can I go with her?"

"You can meet her at SigCorp and make a statement," Eva said. "We need you to anyway."

He shook his head. "I'm going with my wife."

"No can do," Neil grabbed Johnny by the shoulders again. "Come on, you can come with me. Eva, you take her."

"Let go of-"

"Don't make it harder, please," River said softly. Johnny looked at her and deflated.

"River, I'll be with you as soon as I can," he swore as Neil dragged him out. "We'll be back home soon, okay? I promise everything's going to be fine-everything's going to be alright!"

River watched him calmly.

"I'm going to put a shield around you, okay?" Eva asked tentatively.

"Yes."

Eva did.

"Alright, let's go. Thank you for being cooperative."

"Thank you for not punishing Johnny," River answered. "If he's in jail he won't be able to finish our house.

"Okay...so, you're building a new house?"

"Yes. We're building a home close to the lighthouse. I would be able to see it from our window." She looked at Eva. "Did you know they're closing the lighthouse down? It's sad, isn't it? I don't want her to be lonely."

Eva blinked.

This was not the demeanor of an out of control metahuman. She wasn't sure what this was the behavior of exactly (she had some theories) but definitely not someone dangerous.

"That's...nice…" Eva answered politely, as River was led to the police to be put in handcuffs. She lowered the shield long enough for them to cuff her.

"Johnny won't be able to finish it if we're in prison," River said again. "Johnny is a good husband. He's a good person."

She bent her head to be put in the police van.

"We'll need to come with us, Agent…?"

"Rosalene," Eva answered. "River, I'm coming in with you."

"Okay."

Eva sat next to River.

"...Would I be able to request some things if I'll be locked up?"

"You shouldn't get ahead of yourself. We don't know if you will be."

"But you would be stupid not to. You don't seem stupid."

Eva opened her mouth to respond, then closed it, then opened it again. "That...depends on what they say. But it depends on what you want, I guess. What do you want?"

River considered the question.

"Paper," she finally said, "I would like to have sheets of paper."


End file.
